We are pleased to announce that US band Cell 15 have signed for the 2018 edition of the Rites of Spring festival, and that they will be the opening band on Saturday May 5th.

Cell 15 started out as the creative vehicle and one-man band side venture of composer and musician Robert Richardson. Richardson is a seasoned hand with vast experience as a live backing musician for many noted artists over the years, and have also been a part of the bands Hybrid Ice and The Badlees. Cell 15 started out in 2014, when Richardson felt the need to create and explore his passion for progressive rock, resulting in the self-released, critically acclaimed debut album “Chapter One”.Continue reading “US band CELL 15 signed to ROSfest 2018” »

We are excited to announce that US band District 97 will return to ROSfest in 2018! What’s more, they’ll be opening the festival on Friday night.

District 97 was fresh and up and coming when they played for us in 2011, having just recently signed to prestigious progressive rock label The Laser’s Edge with one hot album to their name. Since then, the band has released a further two studio albums, as well as a few live albums. They’ve grown in stature precisely as we all hoped they would, and are now firmly established as one of the best contemporary progressive rock bands in the US. As the band is currently working on new material, they may have a new album waiting by the time ROSfest 2018 kicks off!Continue reading “US band DISTRICT 97 returns to ROSfest in 2018” »

We are happy to announce, pending permits to be granted by the US government, that Peruvian band Flor de Loto has been signed for ROSFest 2018! They will appear as the third band on Sunday, May 6th.

Progressive rock is alive and well on the South American continent, and one of the most popular progressive rock bands in South America is Flor de Loto from Peru. They have built a steadily growing fan base all over the continent since the appearance of their self-titled debut album in 2005. Since then, their solid presence as a live band for more than a decade and the seven studio albums to their name have cemented their reputation as a high quality band.

Their take on progressive rock is one that resides somewhere in between Jethro Tull and Iron Maiden, incorporating elements from metal, Andean folk music and chamber music into their compositions alongside nods towards hard rock and psychedelic rock. This blend results in a sound and style with a broad appeal: this is a band with fans also from outside of the progressive rock universe.

Alonso Herrera, Alejandro Jarrin, Pablo Alayza, Alvaro Escobar, Pierre Farfán and Gabriel Iwasaki are members of a band that has a reputation as a quality act on all levels. We are eagerly looking forward to being able to experience one of the top progressive rock bands from the South American continentperforming live at ROSfest 2018.

RoSfest 2017 was a great success and we could not have done it without all of you! It was great to hear so many good comments from our patrons about the sound, acoustics and especially the new LED video wall. We promise to bring back that sweet technology to RoSfest 2018. I also received great feedback for the surprise act on Saturday night, U.N.I.T.dB. What a great show!

There are so many people to thank this year and I would like to start with my staff. Beginning with my beloved, Beth Ellen Wilson. Thank you for your hard work and contributions to RoSfest by providing the beautiful artwork for all our logos, merchandise, and promotional work. It’s great to have you as a business adviser to help lead RoSfest in the right direction. Your artwork makes me very happy! I love you.

To Donna O’Donnell: Hat’s off to you for another great job well done as we managed to get TF & TD over from the UK despite the US Government rejecting them and then starting the entire process over. You didn’t lay down and quit, but I know you were pissed as shit. I know it’s aggravating as hell. You rock Donna!

Big huge thanks go out to our Production Manager, Kevin Madrishin, for spending countless hours ahead of the festival organizing and answering emails. I owe you a debt of gratitude. I’m very proud to call you part of my family.

Big thanks go out to Darryl Sipf II and Rita Kay Drew our unsung heroes at RoSfest. They were responsible for the transportation of the bands. Thanks again to Brendan Leber “Fez” and our newest staff member, Dana Ocher, our official sheepherders. I noticed the stopwatch and how proud you were to keep the signing down to 30 minutes. No one went over. Excellent work by both of you. Thanks to Larry Dawgiello for handling the merchandise table this year. I will never forget the “Larry” song sung to you in the lobby. You should have been an accountant. Thank you for doing such a great job.

Big thanks go out to Dan MacDonald, who assisted with load in and load out at the after hours party both nights. Thanks again to All Sound Pro for providing a sweet system at the after-hours party. Banjo wake up! Thanks go out to our newest volunteers who handled security, Nick Andreas, Mason Rouser and Jeremy Hefner. You guys did a great job this year.

Another special thanks to our stage crew from Bauder Audio Systems for providing a professional and quality crew year after year. You guys are the absolute best in the business and it’s an honor to work with you once again. Special thanks go out to our lighting company, Spirit Sound Lighting and their staff. They did a fantastic job. I heard nothing but great comments on the new LED video screen.

Special thanks go out to Zeitgeist Media’s, Adele Schmidt and her partner Jose Zegarra Holder for videotaping the show. Plus, a special thanks to Mike Potter “Orion Studios”, for always doing an incredible job at recording the bands. It should be mentioned that this year, seven out of the ten bands opted to do live DVD and audios at RoSfest. Every time, you the fan buy a DVD or CD from one of our bands, a small portion goes back to RoSfest. In essence, you’re helping out both the band and RoSfest.

Big thank you’s and kudos go out to Jim Rezek and Kaz Paul for lending us gear for the festival. That’s huge in my book.

Special thanks go out to the staff at the Majestic Theater. Thank you SO much for making sure that our show runs without hassle. A special thank you must also go out to Jeffrey Gabel, the Executive Director of the Majestic Theater and for welcoming us back year after year. We are incredibly proud and honored to call The Majestic Theater our home. Immense and huge thanks to all of you.

Huge thanks go out to all the bands. I appreciate it when all the bands have fun at RoSfest. Every single band delivered a superb performance. The RoSfest fans appreciate all of you as much as we do. Thanks for giving us a memorable weekend. It was great fun!

To all the Platinum, Gold, and regular seat ticket holders, thank you so much for your continued support. Without you, RoSfest would not be possible. I am truly blessed to have met all of you. We are all part of a community that enjoys this music and we all come together once a year like a family reunion. We at RoSfest look forward to serving you again and are thrilled to be looking forward to 2018!

Next years dates have been announced for May 4th, 5th and 6th 2018. This will be our 15th Anniversary and we plan to make it a very special event starting off with Barock Project from Italy playing the third slot on Saturday night, May 5th. If you don’t know their music, I would suggest buying their latest album called, “Detachment”. One of my favorites on the album is “Promises”. Actually, the entire album is my favorite.

Platinum seat tickets will go on sale November 4th followed by Gold seat tickets going on sale November 11th 2017. The sale of these advance tickets ensures the commitment of booking great bands at RoSfest. We have a wish list that we would like to get at RoSfest 2018 and if any of you have any additional suggestions, please let us know. It’s always good to be connected to the pulse of RoSFest.

Please note: Do not make any plans at the current host hotels “The Aspire” or the “Eisenhower” as hotel location is currently on hold. More information to follow.

We’re glad to announce the return of Swedish band Moon Safari to the 2017 edition of ROSfest as the Friday night headliner.

Moon Safari was formed back in 2003 and have steadily built an audience through memorable albums and live performances.With more than half a dozen albums to their name so far, two of which celebrate the strength of their live performances. The first of these, “The Gettysburg Address” from 2012, documenting their most excellent concert at our festival in 2011.

It is not customary for us to bring back bands that have played here on numerous occasions before, but Moon Safari is one of those bands that really makes a strong impression. They blew us way in 2009, even more so in 2011, and as six years have passed since they played here last so we found that it was a good idea to bring them back again now. They are a solid band, a high quality live unit, and has the stature required to be a headliner. We know that many people will be extremely happy so see their name on the roster again for 2017, eagerly waiting to yet again hear their impressive, positive and uplifting take on contemporary progressive rock. And as they have been working on a new album for some time now, tentatively called “Himlabacken II”, we might expect this one to be ready in time for ROSfest as well.Continue reading “Swedish band MOON SAFARI to headline at ROSfest 2017” »

Based out of Nashville, Tennessee, this is a band formed around the talents of composer and musician Shane Atkinson. Although an active presence in the music scene in the 1990’s, Shane took an extended break away from music but found himself steadily writing new material. Eventually, he concluded that he really had a solid need to record and release these compositions in a proper manner. He managed to solidify this project into a genuine band venture in 2016, after developing it slowly over a number of years. In July, he self-released the Evership CD, a production that has received high praise from both regular fans in the know and progressive rock insiders.

The live band to perform at ROSfest 2017 consists of Shane Atkinson (keyboards, background vocals), Beau West (vocals), James Atkinson (guitars), Jaymi Millard (bass, pedals, background vocals), Jesse Hardin (guitars, background vocals), and Joel Grumblatt (drums, background vocals). We expect quite the experience from this band, set to play second on Sunday, especially for those who enjoy epic length songs, plenty of keyboard leads, and a band that follow in the footsteps of the accessible symphonic progressive rock bands of the 1970’s.Continue reading “US band Evership announced for ROSfest 2017” »